Workout questions

[Xiona]

ok so i got a gym membership, and to my surprise i actually like doing cardio... i know freak of nature. 7 days a week, an hour+ a day is what i enjoy doing.

anyways;

what i need is a muscle building/toning routine. like a mon/wed/fri and what i should be doing in those time frames lifting wise. i have like no pec's and never have haha. i would get a personal trainer but fuck paying 300 a month or whatever, im just looking for a basic outline i can get started on for 1-3 months... remember i have like no muscle lol.

any suggestions and help would be much appriciated, thanks.

PS (i dont have a workout partner yet, so im basically gonna be solo for a while so keep that in mind... IE using the machines and less free weights)

[Quicklet]

Not gonna give you specifics but in general, if you want more toning then do more reps with lighter weight, if you want more muscle then do fewer reps with heavier weights, with the obvious caveat that you shouldn't be overworking the same groups of muscles too much without giving them time to rest and regrow tissue. If you really want to find specific guidelines for what kind of sets/exercises you should be doing, I would recommend looking for a basic book that fits your needs, if anything they help you understand more about how exactly what you do is going to correlate to the results you will see as well as avoiding possible injuries (or giving you descriptions of what you will feel if you do injure something unknowingly) from doing exercises wrong or overworking your muscles.

[Meat]

Not gonna give you specifics but in general, if you want more toning then do more reps with lighter weight, if you want more muscle then do fewer reps with heavier weights,

that's is a myth, you should always try to go for the optimal 8-12 range with max weight.

with the obvious caveat that you shouldn't be overworking the same groups of muscles too much without giving them time to rest and regrow tissue. If you really want to find specific guidelines for what kind of sets/exercises you should be doing, I would recommend looking for a basic book that fits your needs, if anything they help you understand more about how exactly what you do is going to correlate to the results you will see as well as avoiding possible injuries (or giving you descriptions of what you will feel if you do injure something unknowingly) from doing exercises wrong or overworking your muscles.

But to the op, you asked a loaded question, there's tons of factors least of is your body type. But i digress.

I do a basic max-ot style program, this may or may not work for you.
20 mins of cardio a day and usually 3 sets of 4.

Day 1: Back:
Wide grip pullups
Barbell rows
Cable Rows
Lat pulldowns

Day 2: Chest:
Incline Db press
Flat BB press
Weighted Dips
Incline flys
cable flys

Day 3: Rest

Day 4: Arms
(bi's)
BB curls
Hammer curls
Incline curls
(tris)
Skullcrushers
Rope pulldowns
Kickbacks

Day 5: Shoulders\traps
Clean and press
Laterals
bent over laterals
Shrugs
Machine shrugs

Day 6: Legs
(quads)
Squats x5
Front Squats
Leg extensions
Stiff legged deadlifts
Leg Curls
Lunges

Day 7: Rest

[Danos]

yes ;o we could start with your height/weight/age, current athletic ability, goals... and body type looking for(meat head/juicer, NJ-guido, CK-jeans model...etc) or any specific reason you're lifting for (sports?)

[Cyrus_Phoenix]

I just started working out seriously myself and I've been using this Navy Seals workout page as my reference.

http://www.navyseals.com/community/navy ... t_main.cfm

Scroll down to where it says running and physical training schedule.

[Matricide]

http://www.hussmanfitness.com/

hussman will show you the ways. i recommend this site for all your workout/nutritional knowledge needs.

[Mr.City]

Okay, the first thing you have to decide is what groups of muscles you'll be working on. Since you didn't really list expect for pectorals, I'll assume you'll want a little of everything.

If that's the case, you'll want to divide the muscle groups over the course of around three or four days. Don't try and lump too many muscles groups into a day, or else, you'll most likely lose interest after some point and develop the "Fuck it, let's get it done" attitude. You don't build muscle with that attitude.

Now, for dividing up cardio and the weight lifting aspects of your workout, you could place cardio wherever; at the start, at the end, inbetween lifts, do half at the beginning, etc. Just do me a favor and don't fucking do a lap around the gym like some of the idiots at my gym. You don't really get anything, you'll look dumb, and it'll make people (like me) want to crack a barbell into your on-coming face.

As for a routine, I'm not really going to have anything like you should lift barbells this way or you should do this exercise since I don't really know you're working out, but I will offer this advice: leave a 30 to 60 second rest between sets of reps and go straight from exercise to keep your heartrate up.

You might already know this, but you're going to need lots o' protein to build muscle. I'm not telling you to go out there and build yourself protein bars and shake powder (they don't taste too bad though ), but definetly try and get more protein into your diet. Stuff like chicken breasts, skim milk, eggs, and egg beaters are your friends.

Keep a journal of what muscles you worked out, how much weight you used, and how many reps you managed to do. It really helps you see where you need to fix up your routine and where you're improving.

Well, that's all I can think of right about now. Menshealth.com is a pretty good site to use in terms of weight lifting techniques. (I'm assuming you're a man despite the female taru sig)

[Chips]

When you're doing sets of a specific workout (like curls), should you stick to your 3-4 sets right in a row then go on to the next (lets say chin-ups)? Or should you be giving the muscle a break? Example would be... You do 1 set of curls then move on to 1 set of chin-ups then 1 set of whatever, and do one rotation and finally get back to curls?

[Meat]

When you're doing sets of a specific workout (like curls), should you stick to your 3-4 sets right in a row then go on to the next (lets say chin-ups)? Or should you be giving the muscle a break? Example would be... You do 1 set of curls then move on to 1 set of chin-ups then 1 set of whatever, and do one rotation and finally get back to curls?

It's best to stick to one muscle group per day. wear it down to the max then move on

[Deuce]

Not gonna give you specifics but in general, if you want more toning then do more reps with lighter weight, if you want more muscle then do fewer reps with heavier weights,

that's is a myth, you should always try to go for the optimal 8-12 range with max weight.

I dunno I'd beg to differ. I've been doing high reps/low weight for a long time and I have some pretty toned muscles and so do the other runners on my team that do similar routines. We also have high metabolisms too so that probably plays a big role. Personally I still think high reps/low weight will tone your muscles along with a good diet better than anything else.

[Xiona]

ok i guess i was a bit vague.

most of my life ive been very skinny. 6ft tall and 150-165lbs skinny.

ive never had a lot of muscle either, but my ribs stick out like they were meant for a mean chest haha. well after a combination of MMO's, inactivity and not being able to do much from being a smoker i shot up from 165 to 230.

its disgusting and being 26 i said, im not going to just stay like this. so i quit smoking, with the hopes to tackle this. i already changed my eatting habits, (not only what i eat but smaller portions more often). i love cardio and plan to do 1hour + a day regardless of the other routine. um while i cant really run fast perse i can keep my heartrate in the 155-170 range for as long as i want (the whole session until cooldown).

ive already been fat once and lsot the weight but never had a long term plan, now i plan to keep running and hitting the gym or what ever.

its really amazing how when i was 165 girls swooned over me and chased me, now i gained the weight it just isnt flying over so well... especially since i have a super flirty personality and they think "oh crap this fat guy is hitting on me" when in all actuality i would never do them haha. anyways i kinda got sidetracked there;

recap- 6ft, 230lbs.
i dont care what my weight is, i just want a lower BMI% and actual developed muscles particularly upper body

PS im lookin at those sites too

[Deuce]

ok i guess i was a bit vague.

most of my life ive been very skinny. 6ft tall and 150-165lbs skinny.

ive never had a lot of muscle either, but my ribs stick out like they were meant for a mean chest haha. well after a combination of MMO's, inactivity and not being able to do much from being a smoker i shot up from 165 to 230.

its disgusting and being 26 i said, im not going to just stay like this. so i quit smoking, with the hopes to tackle this. i already changed my eatting habits, (not only what i eat but smaller portions more often). i love cardio and plan to do 1hour + a day regardless of the other routine. um while i cant really run fast perse i can keep my heartrate in the 155-170 range for as long as i want (the whole session until cooldown).

ive already been fat once and lsot the weight but never had a long term plan, now i plan to keep running and hitting the gym or what ever.

its really amazing how when i was 165 girls swooned over me and chased me, now i gained the weight it just isnt flying over so well... especially since i have a super flirty personality and they think "oh crap this fat guy is hitting on me" when in all actuality i would never do them haha. anyways i kinda got sidetracked there;

recap- 6ft, 230lbs.
i dont care what my weight is, i just want a lower BMI% and actual developed muscles particularly upper body

PS im lookin at those sites too

You don't need to be able to run fast to get a good workout in. As long as you stay in that range and get a good sweat in you're doing just fine. If you still like playing games a lot which I assume you do I can make a few suggestions for you to get a little extra workout. What I tend to do while playing FFXI is get some push-ups and sit-ups every now and then. Not many just a set I'm comfortable with might be 20 could be 30 or 40. Anyways point is to do this a few times throughout the day. What this does for me is help maintain tone shoulders, upper chest, and triceps. And the nice thing is that when you get used to it you'll almost never feel sore after doing them. It's getting late, but just some of my 2 cents.

[Mr.City]

We need to make an official BG health thread.

[Danos]

Seems like you have absolutely no experience in the gym (lately to say the least).

I'd personally say start with "total body" workouts 2-4 times a week, doing 1 exercise for each muscle group. Start low weight the first week, something that offers slight resistance so your body gets comfortable with form and you can get a feel for how much weight you can actually do. Do roughly 10-12 reps, 2-3 sets on week 1, and about 2-3 times (depending on how sore you get). As you progress through weeks 2, 3, and 4, you can gradually increase weight to something in the range of your "medium, to medium-high" weight and have reps around 7-8 with 3 sets. I personally do this as my "warm-up" before I start getting serious in the gym again after my off period every year.

Now since you're in the lookout for gaining muscle. Anything these people have said about seperating muscle groups is perfect. Try one routine for a month and see how you like it, then try another. After a few months of experimenting, you could probably get a feel of what you like to do and see what best suits "you." Not everyone is built the same or looking for the same goals. When lifting for bulk, I lift by seperating into certain muscles groups a day. When I lift getting ready for sports season, I tend to lift a few exercises, specific to whole body, focusing on increasing strength and getting smaller/faster

As for the cardio, glad you like doing it so much (because I hate it and cant do long periods running, either treadmill or on a track). From what I've learned and what I like best. Doing 60 minutes of cardio probably wouldn't be something I'd recommend for someone that is looking to build muscle while at the same time doesn't have a good "foundation" because going for that long could be detrimental to muscle growth. Interval workouts have worked great for me. Early in my program I start off with light jogs for 15-20 minutes, 3 times a week. As the weeks progress, I begin to cycle in running quarter miles, half miles, at about 80% of race-pace and rest for about 1-2 minutes then I'd repeat 4-6 times. It's like called HIIT, I guess I been doing it all along until I recently read about it. Reason I chose this method is I can't run constantly for long periods of time because I have a minor slipped disc and my lower back can't take the constant impact. I've also read this method is very effective at fat burn and muscle building.

Hopefully I've filled in some blanks for you. Also I'd recommend staying away from lifts like squat and deadlifts at the start. Although they are very good for you, they're probably a little more complex than others. This would increase your chance of injury by alot until your whole body is more comfortable with everything.

[Wilimac]

I read in the Tribune couple days ago about how one of the actors in 300 had to get the spartan body. Like some of it consisted of like 50 push ups, 50 dead lifts a very strict regimen of what he had to eat and a lot of other things.

[Meat]

I read in the Tribune couple days ago about how one of the actors in 300 had to get the spartan body. Like some of it consisted of like 50 push ups, 50 dead lifts a very strict regimen of what he had to eat and a lot of other things.

Well he couldn't very say he used roids could he?

[Quixotic]

http://www.menshealth.com/cda/articl...0013281eac____

Article about 300 actors and their workout

[Wilimac]

http://www.menshealth.com/cda/articl...0013281eac____

Article about 300 actors and their workout

Ya thats it.

[Ksandra]

i would get a personal trainer but fuck paying 300 a month or whatever, im just looking for a basic outline i can get started on for 1-3 months... remember i have like no muscle lol.

ok I know the personal trainer sucks moneywise but I got one myself for 10 sessions recently, and it was definitely worth the price.

I wanted to lose weight too and I've never been to a gym or did sports so I wasn't sure where to start.

Even though I won't lose all the weight I want to in the time I'll have my trainer for, I'm definitely going to get there faster than I would without one. She taught me a lot.

I'd recommen even just getting a few sessions with one to show you how you should be eating/ show you the best way to work out. It's probably the best way to get advice on what you need to do, since everyone is different.

[Meilyn]

Good advice here. Further points:

-do bigger muscle groups first, then move on to more isolated lifts. For example, do bench before you do bis (if you have them on the same day).

-if you want to lift 3 days a week, probably the best is to make an upper body workout and a lower body workout, and just alternate between the two. You can make it more involved later (for example, I currently lift 4 days/week, alternating chest/back, quads/abs, arms/shoulders, hams/abs, with various rest days where I may or may not run/swim/bike depending on how busy I get).

-working the bigger muscle groups will do more for you than trying to spot train. If you want to lose weight through metabolism, you want more lean body weight, and your quads are your biggest muscle group, so build those (ie DO SQUATS, you can start low or try the leg press machine instead).

-switch up your routine every 8-12 weeks, that way you can see improvement, but you'll also keep things fresh. This is good because you'll challenge your body and you won't get bored with the lifts.

-don't be one of those retards who does 80 lifts with their arms and never does anything for any other part of their body (ie, meathead top, chickenleg bottom). Your arms are actually a pretty small percentage (relatively) of your muscle mass, so don't focus exclusively on them. If you do other lifts with your upper body, your arms will be working too anyways.

-I don't know what to say about reps and such, there seem to be many philosophies out there. Personally, I like to do 3-4 circuits, 2 lifts each, 3 sets of reps (ie 12x db press, 12x lat pulldown, increase weight, 10x db press, 10x lat pulldown, increase weight, 8x db press, 8x lat pulldown, move on to next circuit). To each their own, but I would suggest doing at least three sets of whatever you do.

-drink lots of water, dehydration is bad.

-don't get discouraged by others in the gym, everyone starts somewhere, and some of the more judgmental people use all kinds of nasty supplements and chemicals to beef themselves up anyways. Take some comfort that their livers will probably give out before yours.

-try to have some fun with it!